From the Trenches
by CaitlinSici
Summary: Lit. One shot. “Are you still dating that jerk with the Porsche?” The Real Paul Anka, Lit style.


Okay, so. I decided to re-work this fic. It was not to my liking, so it must be DESTROYED. Actually, I kept it much the same, just edited out the crappy parts!

Disclaimer: Isn't it obvious by now that nobody on fan fiction actually owns the shows/book/movies/whatevers that they write about? For those of you that are stupid, I am not ASP, nor am I the new person David Rosenthal. I own absolutely nothing except my ideas. Thank you.

From the Trenches by Caitlinsici (aka: the artist formally known as Spiceygurl. I was getting a little old for that name cringes)

_Flashback_

"_Even when we're together, you're someplace else. You leave and you don't kiss me goodbye. We're at dinner and you're on your cell phone the whole time! You never leave notes anymore about where you're going to be so I have no idea where you are! You haven't forgiven me."_

_Rory rolls her eyes, exasperated. "__What are you talking about?"_

"_For the girls I was with when we were separated."_

"_I _said_ I forgive you!"_

"_Yes, you said it! But you haven't, though. You haven't." _

"_Of course I haven't," Rory screams. She's been holding it in too long. "You slept with three other women. You _had sex_ with three other girls when we were still dating." Logan looked like he was going to interrupt, but Rory continued, "And don't tell me it mean nothing. It means something; a big something."_

"_We were broken up!"_

_Rory shakes her head. "Don't you even _think_ about playing the victim here."_

"_Playing the victim? What—"_

"_You know what Logan?" She interrupts, before he starts spouting out more lies. "We're done. This is the end." Rory looks around sadly. "I have to go; I have to get away from you. Someone will come to pick up my stuff."_

_He stares as she walks out the door one last time._

_End flashback_

Somehow, when things go wrong, she always ends up where Jess is. He's her comfort, her safety blanket. So here she is, at Truncheon Books, looking for him, running to him when things are bad.

"_You look happier than when I saw you last." _

"_I am."_

"_So you...fixed everything?"_

"_Yeah. Everything's fixed."_

_Jess leans forward toward Rory. He crosses his arms in his lap and leans down on them._

"_I'm glad you're here."_

"_Me too."_

Jess leans closer to Rory and closes his eyes. The minute their lips touch, Rory knows it's right. It's what she's been searching for all these long months. All the time she was screwing up: quitting Yale, hanging out with Logan… she was looking for something. And it was Jess the whole time.

Rory sighs and deepens the kiss. Her whole body feels as if it's on fire. She never had this passion with Logan. She had been pretending everything was fine so long; she tricked herself into believing it.

Suddenly, Jess pulls back. "Are you still dating that jerk with the Porsche?"

She lets out a breathless laugh. "Am I still going out with Logan? No. After he cheated on me with an entire wedding party, I'm _pretty_ sure it's over." She takes a deep breath, steadying herself. "And the funny thing," she continued, "is I am not surprised at all. 'No strings attached". What was I thinking? People don't change."

Jess grabs Rory's hand before she can run away. "Rory, look at me." She glances at him through tear-stained eyelashes. "People can change. I changed, because of you. Rory, if I hadn't met you, if I hadn't loved you, do you know where I would be right now? Working at Wal-mart or bumming around California with my absent father and his crazy girlfriend and her even crazier kid. That guy is just a jerk. He's stupid, to lose you like that."

Rory chokes out a laugh. He has changed, she thinks, as she looks around Truncheon Books. He's made a life for himself. Hell, he'd written a _book_.

Finally, she says, "I want us to work, Jess. I want to be with you. It's never been the right time for us. Maybe this time, maybe we can make it work; make it stick."

Jess studies Rory. She seems different. Jaded almost. She's gotten screwed over so many times in her life; he hesitated to put her in a situation where she would be hurt. He didn't know if he could give her what she wanted. But he was ready to try. Needed to try. He'd screwed up so many things in his life, but she was his first love and, as far as he was concerned, his last.

"I want that too. I think we can make it work."

Rory leans in again and kisses him. That single kiss holds so many promises. What could be, what _should_ be… a chance to finally work, to be a couple, to be happy. And she knows it's going to work. She can feel it.


End file.
